A Really Strange Tradition

Remember the neighborhood kid who used to stick a firecracker in a tadpole’s mouth and light it? Or the kid who smeared lightning bugs on each fingernail and proudly held up his hands? No? (And no, it wasn’t me! He lived in my neighborhood, and his name is …) Anyway, that kid would have felt right at home at the annual fiesta in Sagunto, Spain. The fiesta featured one strange tradition. In honor of the local patron saint, revellers would fight over specially-bred ducks that have had their wings clipped and can’t fly. Guess what happens to the ducks? They are torn to pieces, literally. The Supreme Court has banned the tradition, calling it a “bloody spectacle.” You can read more (not much) here.